Morristown GOP chairman: Illegals are 'a drain on our community'

Last week's announcement that Morristown police will be deputized as immigration officials continues to reverberate through the community. Asked about illegal aliens, Ed Ramirez, the town's Republican chairman, told the Bergen Record:
"They're a drain on our community. . . . They live in overcrowded basements and attics. I'm not anti-immigrant but I want everyone to come here legally. When you can't control your borders, you can't control your destiny."

But Suman Chelumalla, a deli worker on Morris Street, defended the undocumented day laborers who gather at the train station as hard workers who take jobs nobody else wants:
"Because of the economy, a lot of residents have cut back and aren't spending as much," he said. "But these men are still buying things. A lot of businesses would be in trouble without their support and labor."